This blog has been created to allow Tom Nelson and his family and friends to share news and information from the UK, South Africa, and no doubt other far-flung corners of the world

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

365 Days, Day 44

Some wisdom from Robert Fulghum. If we all lived like this the world would be a better place. I especially like the bit about living a balanced life: I haven’t done all of those in one day for a long time (my family complains when I try to sing… I do sound awful but I love squawking along to my favourite songs like Nothing Else Matters –by Metallica, my favourite band ever!).

Extremely important is to be aware of the wonder in our world around us. Which ties in with the “biggest word of all – LOOK”. Look for the wonder in your world. Make today a “looking” day. Please let me know what you ‘see’ today. (I check back everyday to see if anyone has left any presents = comments for me from the previous day’s blog… usually not…)

Have a wonderful day!

ALL I REALLY NEED TO KNOW I LEARNED IN KINDERGARTEN

(by Robert Fulghum)

All I really need to know about how to live and what to do and how to be I learned in kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sand pile at school.

These are the things I learned:

Share everything.

Play fair.

Don't hit people.

Put things back where you found them.

Clean up your own mess.

Don't take things that aren't yours.

Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody.

Wash your hands before you eat.

Flush.

Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you.

Live a balanced life - learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.

Take a nap every afternoon.

When you go out in the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands and stick together.

Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.

Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we.

And then remember the Dick-and-Jane books and the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK.

Everything you need to know is in there somewhere. The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation. Ecology and politics and equality and sane living.

Take any one of those items and extrapolate it into sophisticated adult terms and apply it to your family life or your work or government or your world and it holds true and clear and firm. Think what a better world it would be if we all - the whole world - had cookies and milk at about 3 o'clock in the afternoon and then lay down with our blankies for a nap. Or if all governments had as a basic policy to always put things back where they found them and to clean up their own mess.

And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out in the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.